


Lonely

by Subtlety Lost (fishstic)



Series: The Laika Hawke Tales [2]
Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: Bethany isn't dead, F/F, Multi, probably right at the beginning of it actually, she's a grey warden, this is before most of the events of Act 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-18
Updated: 2016-05-18
Packaged: 2018-06-09 06:02:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6893029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fishstic/pseuds/Subtlety%20Lost
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Without his life long friend Puff could not be brave"--Puff The Magic Dragon</p><p>Laika Hawke brought her sister to the deep roads so she wouldn't lose her to the Templars, instead she lost her to the Grey-Wardens. One can only imagine how hard that must be for both of them. The only way they could have been closer to each other is if they were twins. Laika takes it about as well as one might expect from someone who fears loss.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lonely

“I don’t know, Isabela. Isn’t climbing in the window a bad idea? Won’t Hawke be mad?” Merrill asked, staring up at Laika’s window while Isabela tested the trellis that the ivy was growing on to make sure it could support them. 

“Kitten, Hawke needs us,” Isabela replied. “But she won’t tell anyone that.”

“Why not? It’s okay to need people. Isn’t it?” Merrill said. She looked around for a moment. “Wouldn’t the front door be easier?”

Isabela sighed. “Hawke’s mom… doesn’t exactly like me, Kitten.”

“Oh? Why not?” Merrill asked with a small frown. “You’re really pretty and strong and smart and pretty and nice and… I’m babbling again.” 

Isabela chuckled and smiled at Merrill. “I like it when you do that, Kitten. But, you and Hawke are the only ones who think that I’m nice. So you’re in the minority there. I’m not nice, Kitten.”

Merrill tilted her head. “I don’t understand. You are nice. If you were mean, you’d be mean to everyone. But you’re not mean to me, or to Hawke, or Varric. You weren’t mean to Bethany.”

“I’m still not mean to Bethany,” Isabela replied. 

“She’s not even here?” Merrill said. 

“No, but I get letters,” Isabela replied. “Not many, but a few here and there. Mostly she asks me about what I remember from the blight, and if you are okay. She told me she met the Hero of Ferelden briefly. She mentioned you.”

“Bethany writes to you?” Merrill asked. She looked down at her hands for a moment. “She only wrote to Hawke once. Bethany mentioned me or the Hero did? How does the Hero know me?”

“The Hero was Dalish. I assume she knew you before the blight. Bethany wasn’t very clear in the letter about who brought you up first. Though she mentioned a Halla,” Isabela said then paused in starting to climb the trellis. “Wait, Bethany doesn’t write her sister?” 

“Mahariel,” Merrill whispered looking down for a moment. “When I stopped hearing of her I assumed something bad had happened.” She shook her head. “Hawke lets me read the letters she sends Bethany, but she’s not gotten a single one back.” She frowned. “It’s really sad. They were so happy talking before.”

Isabela stepped back from the trellis for a moment. “That explains it.”

Merrill tilted her head for a second. “Explains what?”

“Explains why Hawke’s been so sad. Haven’t you noticed that?” Isabela asked. “She isn’t fighting as hard as she used to.” 

Merrill nodded. “I did notice. I thought getting her to drink with you would cheer her up. Lots of people are happier drunk. Least that’s what I think when I’m in the Hanged Man. I guess it didn’t work. Did she even go? I asked her to, but did she even come to the Hanged Man. I got lost again.”

Isabela smiled slightly. “It’s a good thought, Kitten. But I think she needs people to be with her. I think she’s lonely. And, yes, she did come to the Hanged Man, but she didn’t get drunk. She gets really sad when she’s drunk Kitten. Talks about feelings a lot. Did you know she doesn’t like small spaces?”

“Lonely?” Merrill looked up at the window again. “Being lonely is terrible. We’re going to help her not be lonely, right?” She smiled slightly. “I would have never thought she didn’t like them. She seems pretty happy in them.”

“Right, Kitten. We’re going to help her not be lonely. That’s why we need to climb in the window,” Isabela said. 

“We’re going to climb in the window… so she won’t be lonely?” Merrill asked. “Is she even home?” 

Isabela shrugged. “She’d better be. I didn’t bring you here in the middle of the night just for her to not be home.”

“Why haven’t the guards said something to us? Climbing in windows is illegal isn’t it?” Merrill asked. She was watching the guards patrolling the street in front of Laika’s house. She thought she saw Aveline, but she wasn’t sure so she didn’t mention it.

Isabela sighed. “Maybe it’s because we haven’t actually climbed in the window yet. Come on Kitten, we shouldn’t keep Hawke waiting.”

Merrill nodded. “Who should go first?” 

“You should, Kitten. That way if you slip, I can catch you,” Isabela said. She was more prepared to make sure that if either of them got caught climbing up alone, it was herself.

Merrill nodded, again. Then walked over to the trellis. “You’re sure that’s Hawke’s window right? Not her mother’s?”

“Positive, Kitten,” Isabela said.

Merrill looked up at it once more and began the quick climb up to the window. Once she was there, she climbed in slightly surprised that the window was already open. Then she quickly moved to the side so Isabela could come in too. 

Once Isabela was in the room, Merrill spoke again quietly, “What do we do if she’s asleep?”

“We be very quiet,” Isabela replied. 

Merrill nodded. She and Isabela walked over to Laika’s bed quietly. She smiled slightly when she saw Laika lying there under the covers, sleeping or at least looking like she was sleeping. 

“She’s so pretty, even when she sleeps,” Merrill whispered. 

“I’m not asleep,” Laika whispered back, turning over to face them.

Merrill squeaked slightly, which made Laika smile. 

“What are you two doing here?” Laika asked. The tiredness was evident on her voice, as it had been for weeks. Just because she wasn’t asleep, didn’t mean she hadn’t been trying.

“We’re worried about you,” Merrill said. 

“Hawke, feelings aren’t my thing. You know that. But I  _ do _ care about you. You can try to pretend like you’re not upset, but I know that you are,” Isabela said. 

Laika’s smile disappeared quickly. “I’m fine.”

“You’re the worst liar I’ve ever met,” Isabela replied.

Laika but her lip and did not reply. 

“Hawke, you don't have to talk about what's bothering you. We didn't come here for that,” Isabela said. She knelt down beside the bed so she could be eye level with Laika. “We only came here because we don't want you to be lonely.”

Laika considered that for a moment then replied, “How do you know if I'm lonely? I don't even know if I'm lonely.”

Isabela glanced at Merrill then back to Laika. “Merrill told me about the letters you've been sending Bethany.”

Laika sighed and turned slightly so she could put her face in the pillow rather than talk about it. The two of them meant well, she knew that, but that didn't mean that they could help with this. It was family trouble. That's all. 

“Hawke I know how much your sister means to you,” Isabela said. “How much you didn't want to lose her. Please just let us be here for you. You haven't lost everyone; you've still got us.”

Merrill nodded even though Laika wasn't looking at either of them. “You still have us. And we're not leaving, right Isabela?”

“Right, Kitten. If we leave the guards will probably arrest us for climbing in the window,” Isabela replied. 

Laika turned her head slightly to look up at them. “You’d want to stay, even though I don’t know what to talk about?”

“We wouldn’t have come if we didn’t want to be with you,” Isabela replied. 

“I want to be here with you, Hawke. I like being with you,” Merrill said. “And you don’t need to talk. You can sleep. We… we can sleep too.”

Laika nodded. She considered how to respond to that. There were things they could talk about if they didn’t want to sleep, but she didn’t know what they were. Then she made a choice, and hoped neither of them would misinterpret it. “My bed is big enough for all three of us, if you really want to stay. I’d hate for you to have to sleep on the floor.” 


End file.
